Castor oil product



Patented Jan. 19, 1931 PATENT. OFFICE OASTOE OIL PRODUCT Karl T. Steik,Upper Montclair, N. J., assignorjo National Oil Products Company,Harrison,

N. L, a corporation of New Jersey No Drawing. Application August 27,1934, Serial No. 741.739

laims.

, My invention relates to mutual solvents for castor oil and mineraloils and processes for producing the same, and refers particularly tosuch solvents produced from castor OH and naphthenic acids.

Castor oil has valuable lubricating properties and for many practicalpurposes it is advisable to incorporate it in lubricating mineral oils,as it increases the film strength of the. lubricant, thus increasingpower; the oil consumption is lowered and less sludge is formed bydecomposition when it is used.

As castor oil is insoluble in mineral oils, vari- I ous methods havebeen suggested to produce a I solution of the vegetableoil and mineraloil, which processes depend generally on partially decomposing thecastor oil by subjecting it to high pressures for prolonged periods oftime, with or without oxidation. These processes are objectionable asthey have a deleterious eflect upon the original properties of thecastor oil.

It is evident, therefore, that a product which will act as a mutualsolvent for both castor oil and mineral oil, and thus allow a solutionof the unchanged castoroil in the mineral oil, would be of greatestvalue.

The product of my invention possesses this valuable property, andothers, as will be evidenced by a consideration of its properties asherein set forth. I

I have found that if castor oil be intimately mixed with naphthenic acidand heated above 100 0., there results a product which acts as a neutralsolvent for both castor oil and mineral oils and hence can be employedas a medium for producing a solution of castor oil in mineral oil.

I have found that if a mixture of castor oil and naphthenic acids inproper proportions be heated above the boiling point of water, areaction occurs eliminating water and in which the acidity of thenaphthenic acids gradually disappears and is finally neutralized.

All attempts thus far to isolate and determine the chemical compositionof the compound, or' compounds, thus formed have been ineffective placeslowly at theboiling point of water and, therefore, I prefer touse aconsiderably higher temperature, and I also prefer to use an excess ofcastor oil in order to insure the complete neutralization of thenaphthenic acid.

The product of my invention has many valuable properties, among whichmay be mentioned the following: it is neutral, thus avoiding theobjectionable features of an acid lubricant; it is soluble in mineraloil; it dissolves both raw castor oil and mineral oil and thus allows aneutral solution of the former in the latter; it allows of the formationof non-bleeding greases; it is a definite compound and hence is stableand does not decompose under ordinary storage, thus allowing theretention of the lubricating properties of unchanged castor oil in themineral oil solution.

Another valuable attribute of my product is its adaptability for textilelubricants. The dlfll- 20 I culty and at times impossibility of removingmineral oil droppings, or splashings, from textile fibers and fabricsduring their processing is. a source of great trouble and loss, which isgreatly reduced, or eliminated, in the employment of a 25 mineral oilsolution of castor oil by means of my product. If such asolution besaponified, as for instance with an 'alkali, my compound is broken downinto nascent castor oil soap and nascent naphthenic acid soaps andthelatter emulsifies the mineral oils, thus producing products which arereadily removable from the fiber or fabric. c

The above-mentioned features are indicative of the many valuableproperties of my product. 35

As the proportions of castor oil and naphthenic acids are dependent uponthe acidity of the latter, which varies greatly, it is impossible togive definite quantities but these can be readily determined in apractical production, because 40 the amount of castor oil present mustbe at least suificient to neutralize the-naphthenic acids, and shouldprobably be in excess of that amount.

- I give the following as one example of a proc- 5 ess for producing myproduct:

7 pounds of castor oil are added to 20 pounds naphthenic acids having aneutralization value of 250 and the mixture heated to 270' C. for from 1to 1 hours. I have found that above this mentioned temperature there isa tendency 50 for decomposition and hence excessiveotemperatures are tobe avoided.

. In order to produce a mineral oil solution of castor oil, the castoroil is dissolved in my product and this solution added to mineral oil,

petroleum, irrespective oi. their individual boiling points, as forinstance paraflln oil, kerosene .and the heavier lubricating oils.

By a neutral mutual solvent for castor oil and mineral oil I mean aneutral product which will form a solution of the product, castor oiland mineral oil, irrespective of which compound is in.- fact soluble inthe other.

I do not limit myself to the particular quantitles, times, temperatures,materials or steps of procedure specifically mentioned as these aregiven simply as a means for clearly explaining my invention.

'What I claim is:

1. The product producible by heating a mixture of castor oil andnaphthenic acids to a temperature above 100 6., which product is solublein mineral oil and is a neutral mutual solvent for castor oil andmineral oil.

2. The product producible by heating a mixture oi castor oil andnaphthenic acids above the boiling temperature'of water, which productis soluble in mineral oil and is a neutral mutual solvent for castor oiland mineral oil.

3. The product producible by heating a mixture of castor oil andnaphthenic acids at a temperature of approximately 270 C., which productis soluble in mineral oil and is a neutral mutual solvent for castor oiland mineral oil.

KARLT. STEIK.

